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Keeping Your Wiccan Activities Secret
In the past, this really was not an issue for Wiccans. Due to the complete misunderstanding of our religion, and the real threat of death, the vast majority of Pagans/Wiccans opted not to "go public" with their belief's. Instead, they kept their religious beliefs to themselves.
As our chosen religion has become more widely known, even if still not accepted, there is a tendency to want to "come out of the broom closet". This is a difficult decision to make, and one that should not be rushed. There is any number of factors that you need to consider before making your decision.
Personally, I have elected not to be overly public in my belief, and there are many reasons for this. There are people in my life who have somehow or another (not from me telling them) found out about my chosen religion. I have lost family, friends and loved one's because of this knowledge. Therefore, I am a little gun shy about telling anyone else.
Additionally, I am of the opinion that one's religious preference is their own business, and does not need to be shared with other people. This is something I have held to since I first began exploring religion.
Obviously there are many people know, both in my "real" life and those on the Internet who know that Sundancer is definitely a Wiccan. I'm slowly becoming more and more comfortable sharing this information with people. However, there are still many people who have no clue. This is not because I have lied to them, or deceived them in some way. Rather, it's simply not something that has been brought up in conversation. Now, if I am asked about my religious preferences I have a couple of options. I may, and have, elect not to discuss the matter and simply tell the person that religion is a subject I simply don't discuss. Or, I may tell them a little about my beliefs and let them draw their own conclusions. After several conversations, I may feel comfortable enough with their understanding of my perspective that I will break out the "W" word and tell them about my religion. Again, it's not my intent to deceive anyone, I just truly believe that my religious preference is none of his or her business, nor is theirs any of mine.
The only reason I share all of that with you, is to hopefully point out that you don't need to feel pressured to tell everyone you know that you are now a Wiccan. Believe me, if you rush into this decision you will cause yourself, and others, an immense amount of undue grief and pain. Many people just can't accept that Wicca is a "proper" religion to follow.
At the same time, informing some people about your religion may be helpful. For example, if you are married, your spouse will most likely begin to realize a change in you. He/She may wonder what you are really doing when you go out at odd hours of the night. Hopefully your relationship is strong enough that your mate will accept your decision, even if they don't agree with it. Sadly, not all marriages are this strong. Or you may opt to share your newfound faith with your best friend. Again, this may work out great, or it may backfire on you big time. It's a risk that only you can assess and choose to take.
S.C. points out something that we all must consider. "Some Wiccans decide to tell the world that they're Wiccans (or 'Witches') purely for shock value, to attract attention, make money or gratify their egos. This is the worst reason for revealing your religion to others." Personally, I believe there has been a lot of damage done to the Wiccan faith by people who are fly by night witches, professing their faith with little knowledge, and then months later changing their minds. These people will spend time telling everyone half truths (because quite frankly that's all they know at that point) and further damage our religion. I do not recommend that anyone "come out of the closet" until they have been practicing Wicca for at least a year. This will give you time to determine if this really is the right path for you. If you do this, you will save yourself, your loved ones, and those of us who are Wiccans, a lot of trouble.
Magical Secrecy
To reiterate what S.C. starts this section out with, everything discussed above applies to the area of Magical Secrecy as well. But, as he points out, there are many other things that need to be taken into consideration when it comes to discussing your magickal practices.
Wicca is a religion that utilizes magick as a means of effecting change in our lives, or the lives of others. As such, it is a very important aspect of our path. There are many supposed rules regarding how to perform magick, and when to discuss it. While this lesson will not focus on the practice of magick, we will touch on the discussion of it.
There are essentially 2 forms of magick; folk and ritual. Folk magick is the kind that we apply to our daily lives. It may be in the form of wearing a charm, or in using an herbal mixture, or a daily devotion/chant. It is almost always done outside of a circle setting. Ritual magick, on the other hand, is the type performed, generally, inside a circle. It is complete with the props, the corner calls, etc. Hopefully that brief distinction will help you as we discuss the various considerations.
Some people believe that "secrecy is absolutely essential for successful magic". Many teachers express the need of not discussing the magickal work after it is done. What I have been told regarding this is that you run the risk of altering the magick by formulating in your mind, even subconsciously, an expected result. This can affect your magick, and therefore should not be done, is how the teaching goes.
Yet, there are others who teach that there are times when discussing the magickal working is perfectly fine, and that once the energy is directed it will have it's desired effect regardless of what we may think about after the fact. Again, it's a decision you must arrive at yourself, as to whether or not you feel the energy may be changed or altered if you discuss the matter.
S.C. points out that "true magic is limitless". If performed properly magick will have its effect, regardless of what we think about afterwards. If you choose not to discuss the magickal workings because you are unsure of how someone will accept it, that is a viable reason not to discuss it. If you decide not to discuss it simply because you want to keep it private, that is fine. If, however, you choose not to discuss it because you have doubts about whether it will work or not, then you have a problem. You see, magick will only work if you are 100% in tune with your intent, and believe with every fiber of your being that you have the power to effect that change. If you don't have that belief, then your magick, in my opinion, won't work. So, personally, I think it's a matter of why you don't want to discuss the act.
S.C. then states that "secrecy concerning magical rites is quite limiting and, indeed, can reduce their effectiveness." Now if this isn't contrary to what I'm sure many of us have read before, I don't know what is. Let's take a look at why S.C. feels this way, and then we can decide for ourselves whether we agree with him or not.
S.C. starts his argument by stating that if we accept "that secrecy is necessary to perform an effective rite of magick, she or he has accepted a limitation concerning magic's effectiveness". What I take from this section is that if we really believe that our secrecy is the key to whether the magick will be effective or not, then we are placing limitations on that magick. The key to magick, in my opinion, is the intent of the heart and the focus of the mind working together for a single purpose. If those 2 are in line, than our secrecy, or lack of it, will not have any effect on the magickal working. But, for the sake of learning, lets continue on the premise that the belief that secrecy is the key is present in our mind.
This thought process would cause us to believe that magick is not that powerful enough, on it's own, to effect the change. We are basically placing a restriction on the magick, and on our behavior. As S.C. shows next, this by itself is a problem, but can also lead to more problems. Once we program ourselves to accept limitations, we are then more susceptible to further limitations. There are numerous limitations on magick that "experienced" practitioners teach. To quote S.C. these include "You can't perform a positive ritual during the waning moon. You must check the lunar phase prior to performing any ritual. If you incorrectly time it, the ritual will flop." These limitations, while possibly adding to the mystery of our path, in actuality reduce our ability to work the magick of our choosing.
The need for secrecy, as S.C. shows us, stems from an earlier time when everything surrounding the Craft was secrete, not so much because of spiritual concerns, but of the real threat of physical harm and loss. This threat stemmed from the persecution that our ancestors faced in their daily lives. Therefore, S.C. argues, that this is no longer as large of a concern as it once was.
Once again, it all comes back to why we do what we do. "It's perfectly fine to keep quiet concerning your magical activities - so long as your motivations aren't limiting. If you don't wish to discuss your magical activities with others, don't. Not because some Wiccan wrote that you shouldn't but because you don't want to."
Writing Assignment
Using the learning process discussed in lesson one, determine for yourself the need for secrecy, both about your religion, and about magickal workings. Record your observations and decisions (should you arrive at any) for future reference.